Obstacles

Ok, so I knew that this would happen and it sure did. Usually about 2 weeks into starting a new program I start to lose motivation... haha. 


Some of you know I have been job hunting and I have good news! I got a job!! Wahoo! I work at a financial aid office at the college. It is a great job and I work with great people, thank goodness! :) There is a lot more to financial aid than I thought, and so my brain for the past week has been a little bit crazy! 
(which basically means I didn't exercise and ate more sweets.. haha) 


So this is what I want to talk about.

Obstacles.

While I was on my mission, we occasionally did our own version of a 40 day fast where we wrote down things we were going to give up that were holding us back from our full potential for 40 days. Its a lot harder than you think! For two reasons: change can be hard and once you set a goal, expect the devil to tempt you.


I think a big part of success comes from accepting setbacks, but not letting them stop you. You can't look at those obstacles as a reason to stop and go back to your old ways. We are going to make mistakes and we can't expect perfection. (Though I think a lot of us, including me, still do) Those moments happen to all of us and we need to look at them as something temporary to overcome and work through. 

I don't know who said that but I am a firm believer of it! Growing up I had a tendency to be super hard on myself and I came to realize that it wasn't helpful at all to talk negatively to myself!

I think the best way to overcome obstacles is to believe that you can! It's okay! Give yourself some room to breathe and realize tomorrow is another day! :)

So, I will try again tomorrow! 
Well maybe monday, since tomorrow is sunday.. :)

Week 1

Week one of mission slimpossible is over! Wanna know how it went?

Here is the results!

1 lb lost! 

(woohoo!)

I tracked my food everyday and here is what I learned:

The weekends are hard to eat healthy as I didn't get my veggies and fruit in... :/ and ate pizza and hot dogs. oh and movie theater popcorn... haha! Which was okay, but I went over a bit too much on my calories on those days. So next time, I will try to plan those things in to keep better track. 

I did pretty well on reducing my sweets, which was SUPER HARD! I don't know if any of you, except maybe my family, know how much I love them! I let myself finally have a brownie (that I made with applesauce instead of oil)* with two small scoops of ice cream! I loved every little bite. 

How I got through is I bought the dove promises dark chocolate with almonds and allowed myself 2-3 everyday. Trust me, I wanted more than that! But it was just enough to get me through. I usually waited until the evening after all my meals have been eaten to have it so that I could brush my teeth right after and be ready for bed.

One other thing, I felt hungry almost constantly! I guess when all of the sudden you start working out and lowering your calories, your body freaks out and thinks it is going to starve! I asked what other people do when this happens and here are some good suggestions they gave me:

1. Drink lots of water! Sometimes we confuse hunger with thirst. If you are still hungry 20 min after drinking water, eat something with protein or carbs with high fiber.

2. Eat more veggies, nuts, and protein

3. Eat 300 cal meals 5 times a day so that your body always has food to digest.

4. Chew gum

As far are exercise goes, I learned something here too:

DON'T OVERDO IT! 

That is what I did those first 3 days and then I was so sore I skipped my workouts for the rest of the week. I tried to run 7 miles, and walk 2 in between days plus 30 min of abs and arms strength training in 3 days. 

That was a lot for my body to handle all at once, especially when one of those nights I was up until 4 am and then tried to run in the heat of St George the next day!! Not too smart on my part haha! 

I need to learn what my limits are and not push too hard this time! The thing is I am trying to train for a half marathon and I have to train hard in order to make it!! 

Also just a side note, I haven't switched up my running route yet and I can tell my mind and body is ready for something fresh. It's good to switch things up! 

I feel like overall it was a good week. I learned alot! I had my moments of frustration and disappointment, but this is only week one! I have found that I really enjoy taking pictures of this new lifestyle, especially when I am out running and watching the sunset!

The quote on this picture is from Walt Disney, and I think it is very inspiring! here is the full quote:

"Around here, 

we don't look backwards for very long.

We keep moving forward, 

opening up new doors and doing new things, 

because we are curious... 

and curiosity keeps leading us

 down new paths."

  

*btw, I am sure a lot of you have heard this but you can replace oil with applesauce in a lot of cake recipes. It was still pretty good with the brownie, but it did change the texture a little. Just replace the amount of oil with the same amount of applesauce and then add 2 tbs of oil to help the texture. I think it works best with cakes though!

Nutrition: Tracking, Portions, and Moderation

First off, I am here to tell you that I am nowhere near perfect at this weightloss stuff! 

One of the things I have been trying to do is track my food. 

Here is an example of one of my tracking sheets:

I also use the Sparkpeople website to log in what I eat. It is quite handy! You can map runs, add workouts, log your meals, log your weigh in, and it will give you feedback on what you've done versus what your goals are. You can also edit your nutrition goals to add in vitamins if you want to see what you might be lacking. Seriously, there is alot you can do on this website!

I have read in so many articles how important tracking your food and workouts are. Research has shown that those who track what they eat are far more successful with weight loss. 

It is also important to track EVERYTHING you eat. 

It is a bit tedious and obnoxious to do but it is good for several reasons:

1. You want an accurate count of what you are eating

2. It will help you see patterns in what you are eating and when, 

so you can spot trouble times and do something to conquer it.

3. It makes you want to eat less, because it sucks when you have to write in 

how many chocolates you've been eating!

4. It teaches you to be honest with yourself nutrition wise.

5. Since you can track nutrients, you can also see what vitamins you are lacking! (and find out what might be the cause of your tiredness or digestive issues!)

I have done it on and off through the years, and there are lots of creative ways to do it. I have heard of some people who take pictures of their plate before they eat it so that they can get a mental picture of what they are eating. The more colorful, the better! 

Here is an example of what your plate should look like:

for a clearer picture and a better description, click here

Half of your plate should be vegetables!! 

Who does that!? It hasn't been me! I am learning all this too, so don't worry! :)

I'll be the first to admit this isn't what I am used to nor am I good at it! I also am a firm believer that you have to include foods you love once in awhile, or you are going to be miserable. Learning moderation and balance is key. I think it is perfectly okay to have some pizza and ice cream once in awhile. What I need to learn is portion control. Have what you love, just don't eat the whole bag of candy or a whole carton of ice cream! 

When I took a nutrition class I was 

blown away at how small one serving seemed!

To give you some examples of what a serving size looks like: 

I am positive all of you reading this have heard these things many times! What I am trying to do is learn how to apply it to my own life! 

That is the tricky part! 

Track your food.

Track everything!

Learn portion control.

Eat in moderation!

My Running Tips 101

I have run 4 miles twice now! Last night I did it in 57 min 33 sec!  I have to admit I thought I'd be a little faster than that, but its ok. I definitely pushed myself hard, but I also checked my heart rate as I went so that I didn't have a heart attack and pass out! Although it felt like I was going to anyway a couple times!


(Btw, if you are looking for something to help you map out your runs: www.mapmyrun.com is a great website! It even tells you the elevation of your run, and you can write down what kind of route (trail, road, bike, etc) it is! After you run it you type in the time it took and it will give you your speed and minute mile! It's pretty cool, I recommend it!)


My Runner's Advice:
If you are like me, running isn't all that fun while I'm in the middle of it. So what I did yesterday is took pictures while I ran! (Ever seen yes man? I love Zooey Deschanel, and this is what she does on her run in the movie) 


While you are out running, look around! Like this picture says, soak in your surroundings! I love nature and while I am outside trying to break a sweat I feel rejuvenated when I can look out and see the sunset going down behind the mountains. Nature refreshes me! Next time try it out. Breathe in the fresh air and feel the breeze passing as you go. I promise you it will make you feel better!

A silly thing I do while I run is watch my shadow. If i look down and see myself hunched over ready to pass out, I realize I better straighten my body out!


It helps me make sure I have good posture.


I'm pretty sure that when you are pushing your body to change, you need to make sure it is in a good position! You don't want yourself coming out looking like young Frankenstein! (haha, I just had an image of myself looking just like him while trying to run.. I probably look closer to that than I would hope for!) 


For your  information, I found this picture from pinterest. Just some advice on posture while running:

Good luck remembering all that info! ;)

Lyrics from One Day Remains --Alter Bridge

Ok and lastly, this is my most favorite one: Music & Uplifting thoughts.

For me the most important thing that keeps me going is the music I listen to as well as what thoughts I am thinking. if I am thinking how hard this is, how slow I am going, and how hot and sweaty I am; I am going to run out of energy FAST! But if I am telling myself how awesome I am and how much farther I can go, I am much happier. You gotta believe in yourself, and that YOU CAN DO IT! 

take the advice here-------------------->

I love the moment in my run where I realize I am ALIVE and I am succeeding!! It is an awesome feeling. 

The music I listen to has quite an influence on my runs as well. Some of it is just positive lyrics I can focus on, and other times it is either a constant beat or something to get me going my fastest. 

A few songs from my playlist:

One Day Remains - Alter Bridge

Young Blood - The Naked and Famous

Bangarang - Skrillex (for those who like dubstep)

Cinema (Skrillex Remix) - Benny Bennassi (another dubstep)

Kings and Queens - 30 Seconds to Mars

Time of Our Lives - Paul Van Dyk

Song 2 - Blur

Start the Machine - Angels & Airwaves

Shake It Out - Florence + the Machine

Somebody Like You - Keith Urban

Sexy and I know it - LMFAO

Panama - Van Halen

How to train Your Dragon - John Powell (shut up, I like it!)

Soccent Attack - Steve Jablonsky

I Don't Think Now is the Best Time - Hans Zimmer

Fireworks - Harry Potter Soundtrack

(you should seriously try running to intense soundtrack songs. its like you are in a movie!)

Whelp, good luck and happy running! :)

(disclaimer: I am by no means a running expert, I am just telling you what has worked for me.)